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Cosmognosis
'''Introduction: What Was Forgotten''' '''Chapter I: God and the Origin of Existence''' '''Divinity (O) - No Spirit, no Matter''' Nothingness - Timelessness - Boundlessness Sign of Aries The Point as the root of Spirit and Mind '''The Sephiroth - Archetypal Numeration within Divinity''' Kether, the Crown - Unity, the Monad Chokmah, Wisdom - Division, the Duad Binah, Understanding - Restoration, the Triad --------------------------------------------- Chesed, Providence - Existence, the Tetrad Geburah, Strength - Equilibrium, the Pentad Tiphareth, the Balance - Symmetry, the Hexad Netzach, Victory - Law, the Heptad Hod, Splendour - Love, the Ogdoad Yesod, the Foundation - Perfection, the Ennead Malkuth, the Kingdom - Realisation, the Decad '''Consciousness (1) - Spirit on Spirit''' Sign of Taurus Seal of Neptune Negativity - Chaos of elemental potentials, not yet ordered but determined to be so '''Sacred Geometry - Mathematical Foundation within Existence''' The Circle - Being The Eye - Logos The Triangle - Chaos --------------------------------------------- The Square - Creation Creation is the demiurgic force behind all existing things. The Pentagram - Entropy Entropy is the compensation of existing forces in relation to one another. The Hexagram - Harmony Harmony is the ordered, ideal relation of forces within themselves. The Unicursal Hexagram - Nature Nature is the revealed, inevitable pattern of conduct for all beings. The Tesseract - Dissolution Dissolution is the unbroken motion of things, reducible to eventual unity. The Enneagram - Vitality Vitality is the integration of total creation back to all-oneness. The Decagram - Matter Matter is the eventual fulfilment of all beings and all purpose. '''Mind (2) - Spirit on Matter''' Sign of Gemini Seal of Uranus '''The Astrological Signs''' The Monolith - The Word and Creation Mythology The Primordial Names Lacunae - the Far Ones Positivity - Order across the Four Planes of Existence Alchemical Fire - Psychic matter (and three higher grades of matter which cannot currently be differentiated form it and so are functionally included under this bracket), which surrounds and interpenetrates astral, etheric and physical matter Alchemical Water - Astral matter, which surrounds and interpenetrates etheric and physical matter Alchemical Air - Etheric matter, which surrounds and interpenetrates physical matter Alchemical Earth - Physical matter, which lies closest to the negative pole of the Void Descent of Divinity through the Four Planes '''Eternity (3) - Matter on Matter''' Sign of Cancer Seal of Saturn The Planetary Seals The Beginning (and eventual End) of Space-Time '''The Soul Powers - Indwelling precepts of all living beings, from rocks to planets''' The Soul Seals are named after the planets whose motions are used to track the motions of soul power within the inner life of beings upon earth. The powers are ''not'' derived from the heavenly bodies themselves - the spheres in space are a gigantic compass of sorts, pointing the way to which powers are in what state within the world-soul at any given time. Seal of Neptune - Will Will is the being's right to participate in creation. Seal of Uranus - Thought Thought is the direction of logos towards a reality. Seal of Saturn - Karma Karma is the formation of a thought-reality out of chaos. --------------------------------------------- Seal of Jupiter - Truth Truth is the "is-ness" of things, apprehension of what is real within the created existence. Seal of Mars - Work Work is the emergence of "what will be" from what currently "is". Seal of Sol - Purpose Purpose is the being's role in universal motion. Seal of Venus - Assimilation Assimilation is the merging of forms merging into one another, integrating inside nature. Seal of Mercury - Correspondence Correspondence is the movement of forms in synchronicity, as one organism. Seal of Luna - Growth Growth is the being's gradual integration with all other beings. Seal of Earth - Embodiment Embodiment is the being's vessel for iterations of growth. '''The Eternal Eye - Consciousness, Mind and Eternity within Divinity''' The point of Divinity inside the circle of Consciousness inside the eye of Mind inside the triangle of Eternity gives a prominent glyph known to most all spiritual practitioners - the open eye inside the pyramid. This symbolises in its true interpretation the mind of Divinity moving through its own created universe and working towards its inevitable purposed realisation. '''The One, the Three, the Four, the Seven and the Ten''' One Divinity, Three angles of Geometry, Four Planes of Existence, Seven Solar Powers, Ten Qliphoth of the Void '''Chapter II: The Evolving Cosmos''' '''The Seven Eons of Creative Attainment''' Refinement of matter across the Eons Evolution as spiritual growth through material embodiment Evolution, Consciousness, Awareness and Attainment Kingdoms, Collective Spirits and Group Spirits Worlds within Worlds, Kingdoms within Kingdoms '''The Seven Kingdoms of Nature - Hierarchs of a Solar System''' '''The Three Lower Kingdoms''' Minerals, the Seventh Kingdom - Spirit level 0; group spirit awareness and immobility within their parent planet - Embodiment in physical matter, base awareness upon the principle of crystallisation, unconscious state - Evolution through association with plants, animals and terrestrials grants entry into the next plant kingdom Plants, the Sixth Kingdom - Spirit level 0; group-spirit awareness and immobility upon their parent planet - Embodiment in physical matter, base awareness upon the principle of generation, dreaming state - Evolution through association with animals, terrestrials and celestials grants entry into the next animal kingdom Animals, the Fifth Kingdom - Spirit level 0; group-spirit awareness and mobility upon their parent planet - Embodiment in physical matter, base awareness upon the principle of motion, trance state - Evolution through association with terrestrials, celestials and planetars grants entry into the next terrestrial kingdom '''The Four Higher Kingdoms''' Terrestrials, the Fourth Kingdom - Spirit level 0-1; individualised awareness within the group spirit and mobility upon their parent planet - Embodiment in physical matter, base awareness upon the principle of responsibility, waking state - Evolution through association with celestials, planetars and solars grants entry into the next celestial kingdom Celestials, the Third Kingdom - Spirit level 2-4; individualised awareness within the group spirit and mobility upon their planet's ethereal field - Embodiment in etheric matter, base awareness upon the principle of self-hood, conscious state - Evolution through association with planetars, solars and divinity grants entry into the next planetar kingdom - Function through their activities as messengers between the planetars and terrestrials Planetars, the Second Kingdom - Spirit level 5-7; individualised awareness within the group spirit and mobility within the solar system - Embodiment in astral matter, base awareness upon the principle of memory, subconscious state - Evolution through association with solars and divinity grants entry into the next solar kingdom Solars, the First Kingdom - Spirit level 8; individualised awareness within the group spirit and mobility between solar systems - Embodiment in Psychic matter, base awareness upon the principle of language, superconscious state - Evolution through association with divinity grants entry into the next stage of growth '''Higher Kingdoms and Alignment with Consciousness''' The Enneagram: Levels of Conscious Alignment LI, NI, CI, LS, NS, CS, LG, NG, CG, LN, TN, CN, LE, NE, CE, LV, NV, CV, LO, NO, CO Good and Evil within the Higher Kingdoms: The Terrestrial Kingdom: Adamites and Cainites The Celestial Kingdom: Angels and Devils The Planetar Kingdom: Archangels and Archdevils The Solar Kingdom: Thrones and Great Old Ones '''Chapter III: The Human Afterlife''' '''The Occult Anatomy of Man''' '''The Physical Body''' Platform for Evolution '''The Etheric Vessel''' Transmission from Body to Soul '''The Astral Vessel''' Returning to Divinity '''The Psychic Vessel''' Sleep in Divinity '''Death -''' '''Shades in the Land of the Dead''' The Dream of Death Spectres - the Hungry Dead Etheric Shells '''The Soul in Karmic Heavens and Hells''' Burning off Karma '''The Nine Heavens''' '''The Nine Hells''' Phantasm, the Gateway Minos, the First Hell Cerberus, the Second Hell Plutus, the Third Hell Stygia, the Fourth Hell Carceri, the Fifth Hell Phlegethon, the Sixth Hell Malebolge, the Seventh Hell Cocytus, the Eighth Hell Avici, the Ninth Hell '''Rebirth - The Sleep of Divinity''' Truth and Self-Assessment New Incarnation - Choice or Allocation? '''Past Lives and Present Memory''' Memory - What Does it Mean? Present Consciousness '''Monsters - the Living Dead''' Astral Shells Dwellers on the Threshold Aberration Bodak Draugr Fiend Fury Ghost Ghoul Goliath Mania Mimic Plague Reaver Savage Succubus Vampire Wight Wisp Wraith '''Chapter IV: Religion and the Sacred''' '''Mysticism, the Purpose of Religion''' '''Theological Doctrine''' '''The Four Spiritual Ages of Humanity''' '''Chapter V: Alchemy and Magic''' '''Magic - White, Black and Grey''' '''Esotericism in the 21st Century''' '''The Seven Schools of Magic''' Alchemy Consecration Divination Evocation Necromancy Sovereignty Witchcraft '''Elementals, the Nature Spirits''' '''Weirds - Earth, Water, Air and Fire''' '''Thought Forms - Servitors and Shadows''' '''Demons''' '''The Dark Night''' The Dark Night is an occurrence which will be known well to any reader who has committed themselves to the highest good during the course of their life. It is a protracted time of trial, self-exorcism and struggle - whether the fight manifests itself in the outer world or not, its true battleground is upon the inner planes of the soul. One faces their own worst fears as the world closes in around them, and nothing can save them from their doom except their own will and faith. It is said that the first Dark Night was that of the Spirit Sun itself, occurring when it first beheld the churning chaos of hideous forms and creatures within the elemental chaos. This encounter with primordial oblivion and the fracturing of spirit itself during the ensuing Day's War may well have been the birthing of evil within the cosmos, long before the coming of life as we know it. There are only two outcomes which can result from an individual's Dark Night. Either they triumph over their fears and re-integrate themselves, gaining considerable inner resource in so doing, or they crumble under the attack upon their soul, succumbing to a degree of disintegration within themselves and becoming vulnerable to a number of factors which otherwise would not be able to harm them. With the first, positive outcome, the trial is referred to as the Dark Night of the Soul. With the latter, negative outcome, the failed trial is called the Dark Night of the Void, and for the individual and the wider world, reality is not what it once was. '''Modern Use of the Word, "Demon"''' The term "demon" has been used extensively by a variety of scholars (especially within the western circles of esoteric study) to denote some manner of otherworldly entity lower than the angels. The term is derived from the archaic "daemon", used in ancient Greece to indicate a nonphysical being occurring naturally and properly under normal spiritual conditions. The daemon was a spirit which was neutral in disposition at worst and actively helpful to humanity on occasions. Socrates himself claimed that he had a daemon which warned him of impending misfortune, and sometimes offered philosophic insight when he was stuck upon a particularly difficult exercise in logic. Widespread use of the world spelling "demon" did not arise until later, when early Christianity ascribed the term to many of the deities venerated by various desert tribes while decrying their nature as unworthy powers capable only of fostering materialism in man. Here the more modern implication of the term was clear. The demon, while still being regarded as a naturally nonphysical being, was now a malign entity, dangerous to the well-being of both man and the society of which he was a part. Jesus of Nazareth was recorded as having cast demons from the bodies of numerous persons manifesting symptoms including sicknesses of both mind and body. It appeared that whatever they were, these demons identified by the new theology were working through men and women, even children, to sow criminality, dissipation and disease within otherwise relatively civilised peoples, and were identified by Christ as being his true enemies in contrast to their possessed victims, whom he knew merely as largely innocent (albeit often grossly careless) puppets. Whatever the nature of the deities vilified by the early Christian church, the essential purpose of the beings called demons by those closest to Christ was self-evident. And it was not one at all friendly to the purposes of humanity or God. These entities were bent upon the physical and mental degradation of man, and could only be cast aside by the power of one who was pure of heart and intention. '''The Void''' As was discussed in the second chapter of this volume, the Void, to put it simply, isn't. It is complete and utter absence of anything, a nothingness distinct from the pre-creation nothingness of God. Not only does the eternal Void contain nothing, but it has no essence whatsoever, and no life. '''How Demons are Spawned''' Demons are elemental beings created essentially not by man, but by the Void itself when a person neglects their spiritual duty of growth for too long a period of time and become by degree separated from the essence of God. During such a Dark Night, a person's soul touches against the sheer eternal nothingness which lies beyond created existence, a place which it was never intended to draw near to. This experience is unbelievably horrifying in a manner generally unable to be explained to another, or even to oneself when not presently going through its inner upheavals. The sudden and enduring presence within oneself of a dreadful silence, a strange and horrible deadening of hope and normal emotions, becomes jarringly apparent and in all likelihood prevents even routine function in daily living. The despairing feeling is all-pervasive and the emptiness will not leave, even after many days, even weeks have passed. Reason and rationalisation, attempts to distract oneself or to think oneself out of this inner crisis fail completely and energy levels are drained day by day, sleep patterns disturbed, and a number of other likely deleterious side-effects manifested. Sanity itself begins to slip away from one's grasp as the spiritual onslaught goes on and on and on. As previously stated, there are only two ways out of this situation. Either the person allows their pattern of closely held attitudes, which have led them into the current fix, to perish and chooses life with a different, healthier set of values, or they do not. If they do the right thing, their vitality is restored once the decision to step into the unknown has been fully accepted with the deepest conviction, and their alignment with universal consciousness is restored, accompanied by a spiritual breakthrough in which new strength previously not accessible is found. The Dark Night was one of the Soul. If they tarry in the darkness for too long, and their confusion and growing nihilism drag them down, they will necessitate the creation of a demon in order to continue functioning in any capacity at all. If the individual refuses to alter their path when under the silence of God, The Void moves in upon them and forces them into an overwhelmingly hostile response. Wrapped in existential fears and seeing no hope for an improvement to their circumstances, the person is inevitably driven to rage against reality itself, all reason long abandoned. Blind hostility, directed at anything and everything which is not the self, is expressed with utter ferocity. Considerations of civility, peacekeeping, even friends and family are forgotten in this instant of panic. The individual wills that anything getting in the way of their current spiritual path be removed, instantly and without care for consequence. They will that those who have brought hurt upon them be paid back with infinite suffering. They will only that they survive within their current mode of being, as temporary madness has swamped their awareness in the delusion that anything short of this course will result in their immediate annihilation - a fate that no living creature can withstand the consideration of. After the moment that this nihilistic expression has been made, some large degree of normalcy is restored, in feeling, thinking and function. The person has been granted their wish - they can survive in the world, they can endure. But in the back of their minds there is now a presence which was not there before, a kind of yearning for the life they led before the Dark Night came over them. A strange kind of guilt also, as if they have done what is necessary but somehow have failed to excuse themselves from a lesser experience of existence. They may find that as they resume their course in life, although people around them seem not to notice any significant change in their behaviour or beliefs, everything seems a little more colourless, a little more bleak and foreboding. They find it harder to be alone with themselves, and their mind refuses to rest or be still. Their dreams are no longer so pleasant, and small happenings in the world around them all of a sudden trigger emotional intensities which never threatened before. The karmic residue of their false intention, of the Dark Night of the Void, now follows them wherever they go. '''Nihilism Manifests''' Just what has happened here? No overtly hostile action was taken against any other person, so why has life lost its shine? Why do people no longer feel as close as they were held before? The person is alive and likely in reasonable physical health, so why is misery now easier found? The answer, as the reader is now likely beginning to suspect, is that an elemental being has been brought into existence during the critical point of the recently passed Dark Night. Having failed to correct their misguided attitudes, and quite naturally having been unable to contain the resulting chaotic pressures within themselves, the person has, in succumbing to the Void and coming under its temporary compulsion, violently externalised these pressures in a moment of impotent terror, rage and hatred. This, their will of the moment of weakness, has apparently removed the inner stress from their being, and allowed them to escape their awful fate. However, no such escape has been made, in any real sense of the word. The elemental born of the pairing of consciousness and the Void (and inevitably karmically tied to its creator) is a demon, an elemental apart from all others in three primary ways. The first manner in which a demon differs from a regular elemental is, of course, in the mode of its creation. An artificial elemental, be it a servitor or a shadow, be it created by a magus or by the most neurotic of sorcerers, was created mentally for a specific purpose, by an individual being within existence. It has a particular goal or task to which it is devoted, a certain productive (or, perhaps unproductive) end which it seeks to bring about. The demon has no such defined purpose or end in mind. It was created ''through'' an individual being by that which is ''without'' existence, and is the spiritual externalisation of horror so tremendous that had nature allowed it to remain within the soul, would have resulted in the total self-destruction of the being. Its independent existence allows its creator to have chaos removed from intimate experience until some future time (which must now inevitably come) in which it can be faced hopefully with a greater chance of success in a Dark Night of the Soul. The second difference between a normal elemental and the demon is a difference in moral nature. Even the most degenerate and psychopathic of minds generating a shadow yet clings to some vestige of rationality when determining the artificial elemental's specific task. Being an elemental born of absolute existential panic, the demon is an enemy to reality itself, a source of disease for all that lives and utterly void of any such trace of reason. For as long as it endures in any form, the demon's "purpose" is to bring the most suffering possible to any being it can influence, in any way it can. Its natural function in its consummate virulence is to essentially to symbolically wave a gigantic red flag while screaming "something is very, very wrong over here! Someone do something about it!". For this reason, demons are sometimes referred to as the spirits of negation, personifications of karmic retribution. No matter how far an individual being falls into madness, they will never match the demon in the depths of their evil. It ceaselessly pursues the annihilation of anything it perceives, living beings (especially those who are virtuous and highly integrated) being targeted first if possible (though this is rarely achieved). Consideration of its individual power aside, the demon in its own nature is the bane of man, devil and archangel. Possessing no soul, it neither wishes for, nor requires by Law, any kind of redemption, and no such redemption is possible. Being the only being which is fundamentally rooted in non-being, it is the only entity to which true malevolence can ever accurately be ascribed. Finally, and perhaps most unsettling, the third point of distinction between the elemental and the demon is in the span of its existence. Once the thought intensity that sustains a regular elemental has run its course, the elemental disintegrates back into the elemental essence, its lifespan complete. A demon, however, by the very nature of its creation, endures until the very being which the Void used to spawn it draws it back to their soul and successfully neutralises it, returning it back to the absolute nothingness from which it came and erasing all trace of it. Herein lies the very real importance of individuals resolving to "face their personal demons" - this must be done for their own sake and for the sake of anyone else vulnerable to negative influence. This unique property of all demons means that even the weakest of them can endure for thousands upon thousands of years as their creator goes embodiment after embodiment without correcting their age-old mistakes of conscience. It is, however, also what makes the victory of a Dark Night of the Soul so rewarding in its fulfilment - a real triumph over the demons having their origins in oneself is perhaps among the most heroic acts possible for the individual, despite its general invisibility to the outside observer. '''Conclusion: The Coming Age'''